labyrinth

Etymology

Borrowed from French labyrinthe or Latin labyrinthus, from Ancient Greek λᾰβύρῐνθος (labúrinthos, “a maze”).

noun

1. (Greek mythology) A maze-like structure built by Daedalus in Knossos, containing the Minotaur.
   1. A complicated irregular network of passages or paths, especially underground or covered, in which it is difficult to find one's way.
   2. (horticulture) A maze formed by paths separated by high hedges.
   3. (by extension) Anything complicated and confusing in structure, arrangement, or character.
      Whitney is absorbed especially by Dublin's unglamorous interstitial zones: the new housing estates and labyrinths of roads, watercourses and railways where the city peters into its commuter belt. 23 August 2014, Neil Hegarty, “Hidden City: Adventures and Explorations in Dublin by Karl Whitney, review: 'a necessary corrective' [print version: Re-Joycing in Dublin, p. R25]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review)
2. (anatomy) A tortuous anatomical structure:
   1. (anatomy) A complex structure in the inner ear which contains the organs of hearing and balance. It consists of bony cavities (the bony labyrinth) filled with fluid and lined with sensitive membranes (the membranous labyrinth).
   2. (zoology) An accessory respiratory organ of certain fish.
3. Any of various satyrine butterflies of the genus Neope.

verb

1. to enclose in a labyrinth, or as though in a labyrinth
2. to arrange in the form of a labyrinth
   It is said to have been labyrinthed by secret exits and cunning contrivances to facilitate the escape of fugitives from the law. 1898, Missionary Review of the World - Volume 21, page 178
   By labyrinthing, close axial running clearances can be increased without reducing efficiency. 1963, Water & Sewage Works - Volume 110, page 43
   In the ports the transmission path is often labyrinthed through shielding but the peculiar requirement of straight beams has been considered. 1998, Peter E. Stott, Giuseppe Gorini, Paolo Prandoni, Diagnostics for Experimental Thermonuclear Fusion Reactors
   The element illustrated has been 'labyrinthed' to improve its performance. 2011, Peter Capper, James Garland, Mercury Cadmium Telluride: Growth, Properties and Applications
3. to twist and wind, following a labyrinthine path
   We labyrinthed through it, meeting scores of panty-clad and moccasined Indians and barefoot women and girls toiling marketward under atrocious burdens; for the day was Sunday. 1917, Harry Alverson Franck, Vagabonding Down the Andes, page 313
   Hands clasped together, Linda and Ron walked through the huge doorway leading to the hall that would labyrinth it's way to the parking lot. 2000, James Cook, Counter-Clockwise, page 90
   I'm far from home, labyrinthing through unfamiliar alleys, before I find the right house. 2017, Mahvesh Murad, Jared Shurin, Neil Gaiman, The Djinn Falls in Love and Other Stories
4. to render lost and confused, as if in a labyrinth
   They arrive at their different destinations long before day, and make their attack about day-break, and seldom fail to kill or make prisoners of the whole family, as the people know nothing of the matter until they are thus labyrinthed. 1886, Pliny A. Durant, History of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, page 52
   He favored, he said, "a kind of half-sleep where I labyrinthed myself." 1951, New Mexico Quarterly - Volumes 21-22
   Above all, he flatters the men by emphasising their numerical victory: a British regiment may have turned into a troop, but it left behind it 'labyrinthed legions' of dead Russians. 1995, Patrick Waddington, Theirs but to do and die, page 148